


Le chat noir

by xsunny



Category: Joyeux Noël | Merry Christmas (2005)
Genre: Canon-Typical Violence, Cat, Fluffy, Fluffy Ending, Gen, Post-Canon, World War I
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-12
Updated: 2020-04-12
Packaged: 2021-03-02 01:20:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 982
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23606683
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xsunny/pseuds/xsunny
Summary: He finds the black cat a few hours after the battle.
Comments: 5
Kudos: 10





	Le chat noir

Audebert notices the cat a few hours after a gruesome battle, when his men are taking the injured to the infirmary and counting the dead. When he thinks he can't go on anymore, and the will to leave all behind is almost too hard to dismiss.

It's black, shivering in the drizzle in the middle of no man's land. Before any of his men have the brilliant idea of finishing the poor cat by bullet, Audebert orders them to stand down and let the cat be. 

The cat now licks its paw like nothing else in the world matters, and looks at Audebert from time to time with its bright green eyes. 

He notices the big paws that suggest it would be a bigger cat if not slightly undernourished, and watches as the cat decides to come closer, closer… it jumps, and then it's inside the narrow corridors of their trenches, leaning on Audebert's legs, circling him with its tail up. For some trick of destiny, the black cat went after him, and no one else. 

Audebert can't hide from his men how proud he is that, from all people present, the cat would go to him, even with some of them calling and making beckoning noises. 

"He likes you, sir." One of the men says.

"Or he knows who's the boss." Comes another reply. 

"I guess he's after some of the rats in our side." Another one of them smirks.

The cat reminds many of them of Nestor, if Nestor was thin and, well, black.

"Hopefully he's not a double agent, like Nestor." Laughing follows the comment, the French men begging for a diversion from the terrible day they had.

Trying to hide a smile, Audebert finally leans down and gets the cat on his arms. It's shivering, and a small sneeze makes it shake its head from side to side. 

"Who is this little panther?" Audebert coos and his men smile. This is not the first, nor will be the last time their superior officer will find himself with a stray pet. "Gentlemen, I'm retiring to my quarters." Audebert tells them and distributes orders for the evening. 

He goes to his room deep inside the dugout, the cat still in his arms. He produces a small rag with which he dries the cat. Strangely enough, the cat allows it, emitting a small purring sound. 

"You must be hungry..." Audebert picks a small piece of meat he had saved for later and puts it on a corner of the room for the cat. It eats the food fast, eagerly.

"You must have been starving." Audebert says and tries to pet its head while it eats. To his surprise, the cat doesn't growl or tries to attack him to defend the food; it just looks at him with... _gratitude_? Audebert must be seeing things.

He's torn between locking the cat inside or allowing it free passage as he goes to the washrooms and grab something to eat. He decides to let it free to go. There is no sense in worrying about a black cat when they lost so many today. It's just a cat, after all. 

A nice, cute, and kind of sick ball of fur. 

He is definitely not thinking about the cat when he comes back an hour later, washed, fed and… No, the small piece of meat he didn't eat is not for the cat. It's for… _Who am I deluding?_

"Pss, pss… cat?" Audebert can't resist checking if it's still there. 

He doesn't find it, and a small piece of his heart is torn, one still reserved for pure and light things, the one the war could not destroy. 

He lets the door ajar, for he wants to hear if something happens - not because the cat may return. He puts the piece of meat wrapped in a piece of cloth over the table, close to him, and goes to work. He has a lot to account for, people, but also equipment, provisions… He's deep into the calculations when he hears it. A small sneeze. 

"Cat, are you here?" 

A moment later, a furry and warm _thing_ touches him on the small space unclothed between his sock and breeches.

Audebert smiles, a true smile, one only such a situation could bring to his lips.

"Cat… I brought you something."

The cat leans on his legs while he puts the piece of meat on the same corner, and adds a small cup of water close to it.

He keeps looking at the cat, work forgotten, for a long time. 

When he looks back at the papers and calculations, he decides he can spare a few hours after the terrible day they had. 

As he undresses and throws back the covers of his cot, he is surprised to find a little black ball of fur already sleeping close to the wall over the mattress. The cot is small, and he needs a whole night of sleep, he justifies to himself as he picks the cat gently and puts it down on the floor. 

The cat blinks awake, pretends it doesn't care for a whole three seconds. Then it sits with its back to Audebert, who already feels bad enough. Then it sneezes, again.

Audebert sighs. "Hey, cat, maybe we can make it work for two."

The cat looks back at him, mildly interested.

"Maybe we could share?"

Licking its paw.

"Cat?"

It looks at Audebert with interested yellow eyes - _weren't they green?_

Audebert smiles and throws back the covers again, ' _psss-ing_ ' it.

The cat doesn't need more encouragement, it jumps on the bed and lays down like a ball, touching Audebert's stomach. 

He caresses it's head and the cat purrs, its small snout hitting the hand and demanding he passes his fingers on its whiskers. 

As they both go to sleep together, tomorrow doesn't seem so bad to Audebert anymore.

**Author's Note:**

> A small story that came to mind today. :)


End file.
